The present invention relates to the management of a parking lot and, more particularly, to setting up and using a parking lot managing system that relies on intelligent processing of images of the various parking spaces.
A number of methods have been proposed in the past in order to provide customers guidance within a parking lot to quickly find available space. The use of different sensor technologies, such as ultrasonics or image processing is known. These methods may determine occupancy of slots and provide the driver with guidance to available spaces either upon entry to the parking lot or by displays strategically located within the lot. See for example Trajkovic et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,426,708, which patent is incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein. However, these methods do not provide customers with guidance to find their car when leaving the parking lot. They do not allow the parking lot proprietor the opportunity to preferentially charge the customer according their parking location within the parking lot. Furthermore, these systems do not integrate the parking lot illumination system with the parking control system so as to enable illumination levels or ventilation systems to be controlled based on parking occupancy, reducing energy consumption. In addition, they do not detect the type of object that is stored in the space, determining if it is a car, motorcycle, parking cart, or other object. They also do not recognize unique aspects of the vehicle, such as make, model, color, and license plate, and thus do not allow the opportunity to present targeted advertisements or marketing programs based on such information. They also do not enable remote viewing of individual parking spaces, enabling human intervention to correct mistakes, detect faulty hardware, or provide real-time feedback to improve system accuracy. Finally, they are not integrated with closed circuit security systems, nor do they offer any information about vehicle and passenger security, such as thefts and violent attacks.